Traditionally, square or rectangular plate glass is provided with a pencil edge, flat and seam edge, miter edge or O. G. edge by a vertical glass edger. Circular plate glass is edged by use of a horizontal beveler edger. These two separate machines are required to provide full service edging for different shapes of glass.
An example of a vertical glass edger is a VE-4 vertical glass edger available from Sommer and Maca Industries, Inc. of Chicago, Ill. This vertical glass edger, as shown in FIG. 1, is designed to grind and polish edges on the most common range of glass thicknesses of rectangular and square shapes of glass while the glass is held vertically. The edger includes three main assemblies: the center section, conveyor section, and glass support frame.
The center section includes a control panel, grinding and polishing wheels and drive motors, conveyor drive motor and gears, coolant pump and filtration system, front pad conveyor chain, and rear register pad conveyor chain. The edger uses two diamond grinding wheels seven inches in diameter and two polishing wheels eight inches in diameter.
The conveyor system includes an infeed belt that carries glass into the center section, where it is gripped by the chain pads and moved through the edger by means of conveyor chains. The glass moves out of the chain pad's grip onto the outfeed belt. The conveyor can be varied in speed from 0 to 240 inches per minute.
The glass support frame supports glass vertically as it is conveyed through the grinding and polishing operation. The frame can accommodate glass as short as four inches and as long as 72 inches, to a maximum height of 72 inches, and any thickness from 1/8 inch through 3/4 inch. Two end uprights support both the frame and the ends of the conveyor system.
For edging of round plate glass, a shape beveler edger such as a Somaca SBE-1 beveler, edger and polisher available from Sommer & Maca Industries, Inc., of Chicago, Ill., may be used. This machine efficiently bevels, edges and polishes custom shapes, circles and ovals. The machine edges 201/2 inch to 100 inch diameter glass. A piece of glass to be beveled, edged or polished is horizontally mounted on top of a plurality of support cups. The support table is rotated about a vertical axis for beveling, edging and polishing the vertically extending edge of a piece of glass.